Q: We understand that you’ve been working in the performing arts as a director or programmer for a long time. What kind of work did you do before the International Shakespeare Festival?

A: I was a literature teacher and arts manager. I’ve been running the Gyula Castle Theatre since 1995. Before that, I headed the Culture Department at a local government, and before that I worked as a teacher.

Q: Please describe your festival and venue.

A: The Gyula Castle Theatre takes place in the court of the only surviving brick castle in Central Europe. Between early July and August 10, guests are entertained with the best performances of historical and modern drama, different types of prosaic theatre, opera, musicals, ballet, medieval court music, jazz, blues, classical and folk concerts, puppet shows, and folk and modern dance performances at the summer theatre. Not only has the fortress’s court been turned into a theatre, but a great variety of programmes are available on the nearby Lake Stage and on stages set up at different places in the town.
Gyula Castle Theatre has been organising the Shakespeare Festival Gyula Shakespeare Festival Gyula since 2005. The two-week event is part of a six-week multi-genre festival programme at Gyula Castle Theatre.
The main programme of the Shakespeare Festival is as follows:
Every year, it starts with one new production from Gyula, which is presented on stage several times. At least three performances are hosted each year, one domestic and two from abroad. The festival has hosted work by top international artists like Peter Brook, Robert Sturua, Eimuntas Nekrosius, Oskaras Korsunovas, Andrei Serban, Silviu Purcarete, and many more. The best Hungarian artists appear there, too.
In addition to the main programme, there are a lot of sub-programme features that bring the festival first-run performances in theatre and other genres. Guests can enjoy Renaissance and modern music concerts, street theatre, alternative theatre, performances by students in the dramatic arts, film screenings, Shakespeare conferences, and Shakespearean cuisine.
The performances were chosen based on suggestions from the six-member Shakespeare Committee. The members of the Shakespeare Festival Art Committee are Imre Csiszár (director), Adrienne Darvay Nagy (theatre historian), Tamás Koltai (critic), András Nagy (dramatist and curator of the National Institute and Museum of the History of Theatre), Attila Vidnyánszky (director), and József Gedeon (director of Gyula Castle Theatre). The final decision is made by József Gedeon.

Q: The Gyula Castle Theatre seems like a site with a lot of history.

A: It’s an open-air theatre. This is a very popular theatre form in Hungary. I chair the Hungarian Open-Air Theatres Union. While the indoor theatres are on summer holiday, we are open from mid-June to mid-August, giving performances all over Hungary. We have had over 500 performances, 40 new productions, and an audience of 250,000. Most of us work in or around historical buildings—castles, temples, ruins. In Gyula, we work in a 600-year-old Italian-style brick castle yard, where we stage Shakespeare and historical dramas without sets.

Q: Korea’s Mokwha Repertory Company is performing The Tempest for your festival this year. How did you discover and invite them?

A: I heard about their success in Edinburgh. Last year, the Yohangza Theatre See related article from theApro was here with A Midsummer Night’s Dream , and it was a very, very big success. I decided that I should invite a Korean performance this year, too. I like the richness of Korean culture. I was in Seoul in last October and saw Mokwha there. Since last October, I’ve been working with the Korea Arts Management Service to arrange Mokhwa’s trip. I hope the audience enjoys The Tempest; I like it very much.

Q: Is there any standard you apply when selecting Shakespeare performances from different countries as you program the festival?

A: We choose three to four international performances every year. Our criterion is a high level of artistry. We also invite Hungarian performances—not only theatre, but music, dance, film, and street theatre, too. The artistic committee helps with the selection, and we have a very good partner organization, the European Shakespeare Festivals Network . They give us information about the global Shakespeare scene. We sometimes cooperate, develop new performances, apply for EU Culture project fund, and exchange ideas.

Q:The Gyula Shakespeare Festival is part of the European Shakespeare Festival Network. Could you tell us about the network’s major activities and collaborations between the members?

A: We established it five years ago, with members from Germany, Romania, Great Britain, the Czech Republic, Poland, Spain, and Armenia. We work very closely, helping each other to organize co-production performances. Last year, Oskaras Korsunovas directed Miranda with OKT from Vilnius, Lithuania; this year, Silviu Purcarete directed The Tempest with Craiova National Theatre in Romania. The Network’s head office is in Gdańsk, and we meet once or twice a year. The founders are Jerzy Limon (president of the Foundation’s council and director of the Gdańsk Shakespeare Festival), Emil Boroghina (vice-president of the council and director of Fundatia William Shakespeare in Romania), Philip Parr (secretary of the council and director of the Big Bill Festival in the United Kingdom), József Gedeon (treasurer of the Foundation and director of Gyulai Várszínház in Hungary), Mircea Cornisteanu (director of Teatrul National Marin Sorescu Craiova in Romania), and Rainer Wiertz (director of Shakespeare Festival in Globe Neuss, Germany).

Q: Could you talk about some of the issues facing your region (the performing arts scene in Eastern Europe) at this moment?

A: The performing arts have traditionally been very important in Eastern Europe. Before the political changes of the 1990s, culture was seen as very important in the different countries—maybe the only free thinking available for intellectuals. Now, sadly, there are more and more commercial things working against the culture, but we will do it as long as we can. Theatres have met a large audience in Hungary, so culture has remained very popular until now. We are a theatre that is part of the town of Gyula. We get money from applying to the town, the Ministry of Culture, the Hungarian National Foundation, the Tourist Board, and a few sponsors. Ticket revenues are 15%. Most of the big Hungarian theatres have companies and are part of the state, cities, or towns. There are many small independent theatres, most of which get their money from cultural funds. Ticket revenues aren’t very high, so people don’t make a lot of much—they average maybe 500 USD a month. Some of the Hungarian theatres are open to collaborating with international partners, but there aren’t a lot of artists from the older generation who speak English. The younger generation speaks English. The economy hasn’t been very good for these past few years in Hungary, because we belong to the European economy. We are an EU member.

Q: Funding systems have been established to support international exchange between Eastern European countries, such as the Visegrad Fund.

A: The Visegrad Fund has four members: Hungary, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, and Poland. The fund helps the each country collaborate on cultural and social things. During the last century, Eastern Europe had a very stormy history, so some of the countries have had problems working together. The VF helps them do things. I think the VF is only used by the four member countries, but Korean artists and professionals can take part as partners. Eastern European artists are highly skilled, open-minded, and open to working with Koreans artists. There are some organizations working to help find partners from Hungary . Artists in Hungary are very strong at music, folk and classical, and in theatre, fine arts, and film.